Holy Night: My Husband is Definitely a Paladin - Chapter 193
Riosa was always treated as inferior when she was by Cecilia’s side.
Although she was also a first-grade purifier, people avoided giving her even a word of praise, fearing Cecilia’s reaction.
‘But things are different here.’
When Riosa joined Irene’s circle, she expected the other purifiers to be wary of and envious toward her.
Instead, they looked at her with bright eyes, calling her a ‘true first-grade purifier’, eagerly asking her questions and listening to her stories.
The one who paid the most attention to her stories was Irene.
Unlike the princess, who always talked only about herself and dismissed Riosa’s concerns as trivial, Irene truly listened.
‘Irene is the reason I was able to get rid of that knight.’
That knight had sided with Cecilia and stayed with Riosa only out of convenience.
Riosa had initially planned to endure it until the end of the subjugation period, thinking it would be hard to find someone else as capable.
But the resentment built up inside her.
Why should she continue to tolerate a betrayal, despite staying loyal herself?
One day, while talking with Irene, the topic came up.
Before she knew it, Riosa was pouring out her frustrations, tears streaming down her face.
Irene gently consoled her, offering kind words of comfort.
Thanks to her, Riosa resolved the next day to end her pair contract with the knight who had betrayed her.
Afterward, Riosa, now unsure of her next steps, was introduced by Irene to a knight named Maxime.
Maxime’s purifier had abruptly ended their pair contract and left the fortress, saying they couldn’t stand staying there any longer.
“Hmm, how about I pair with you instead? Of course, since the gap in our abilities is so vast, I won’t do more than hold hands.”
“R-Really?”
What Riosa had said casually left Maxime blushing deeply, looking at her as though it was the honor of his life.
She found it endearing, and it had already been a week since they formed their pair.
‘Maxime is a little inexperienced now, but if we work together for a year or two, he might become better than most other knights.’
The thought of working alongside her earnest and somewhat naïve knight filled Riosa with hope for the future.
Naturally, Riosa and Maxime joined Irene’s circle.
And when Maxime went off for training, it became routine for Riosa to spend time with Irene.
In turn, Riosa began teaching Irene how to better use her purification power.
“Riosa, you’re amazing! I’ve struggled to figure out how to control my power, but your explanation made me understand right away!”
“Well… that’s thanks to my excellent teaching.”
“Then could you teach the other purifiers too? It’d be a huge help for all of us when we go on the next subjugation.”
Riosa had been about to refuse with a sharp comment, but when she saw Irene clasping her hands together, her eyes sparkling with hope, Riosa pouted.
“Fine… but only one hour a day.”
Thanks to this, the purifiers in Irene’s circle became much faster and more precise in their healing abilities.
Even Riosa, who had grumbled initially, began teaching with enthusiasm as she found herself enjoying it.
“Reina, focus! How can you be a second-grade purifier and still not do this?”
“Waaah, Riosa is scolding me again!”
Before long, Riosa had become not only a natural part of Irene’s circle but also one of its most passionate participants.
After finishing her treatment of the paralyzed maids, Riosa stepped aside as Reina and another new purifier from the circle stepped forward.
“All right, everyone, line up over here.”
Cynthia, sensing the maids’ confusion and unease, arranged them into a line.
Then, Reina began using her purification power, lightly holding each maid’s hand as she moved down the row.
The other purifier handed each maid a small pebble.
“Um… what is this?”
The maids, still unable to hide their fear, asked hesitantly.
Reina placed her hands on her hips and said energetically,
“The power I’ve imbued you with is a protective force. It’s not extremely strong, but it should weaken the impact if a monster attacks. As for the pebble, I’ll let Luris explain.”
The purifier called Luris held up a small stone box. When she opened it, the box was filled with pebbles identical to the ones the maids had received.
“What you’re holding is my artifact, the ‘Faint Alarm’. If you grip it while thinking that you need to alert someone of danger, then…”
Luris picked up one of the pebbles in her hand.
The maids standing nearby gasped in surprise and stared at their hands.
The pebbles they were holding began to tremble slightly.
